Star Wars Episode 2: A Retelling
by Tellemicus Sundance
Summary: With Anakin operating outside the Jedi Order's control, the Sith once again consolidating their power, and the galaxy rushing ever closer to all-out war, the Jedi come to the startling realization that they are woefully underequipped and drastically outmanned to be able to suitably protect the decaying Republic. The Shroud of the Dark Side grows ever darker.
1. Dark Premonitions

**Star Wars: Episode 2—A Retelling  
**Attack of the Clones  
By: Tellemicus Sundance  
_#01: Dark Premonitions_

**22 BBY  
Dagobah**

Night on the swamp world was surprisingly cold. The overpowering humidity that was ever-present during the day coalesced and settled, coating the world in a fine layer of dew and water which helped to accentuate the cold night air. The humid clouds of the day slowly cleared, revealing a night sky that was absolutely vibrant with the stars of the galaxy, the only time of day which the sky could actually be seen.

The craggy and murky world had few patches of earth that were even remotely firm and stable enough for a ship larger than an average starfighter to land on without sinking into the soft muddy soil. Yet, on one of those incredibly few firm spots, there rested a large starship. The _Consular_-class cruiser was painted mostly black with crudely shaped jagged and fear-inducing neon-green of stripes and fangs. The belly of the vessel had been greatly expanded and heavily reinforced to carry and store far more than the standard amount of cargo and it helped stabilize the cruiser while landed. The name of the cruiser was the _Black Rover_, a pirate's vessel.

Near the cruiser was a small, fenced off campsite that the pirates had set up. It was fairly simple camp with a large bonfire, a small cantina, a series of tents and housing structures, some with chained sex-slaves inside, and a shooting range and fighting ring off to the far side. Surrounding the cruiser were a motley collection of ten small freighters and thirty starfighters, the personal vessels of many of the pirates.

Setting his binoculars aside as he finished viewing the campsite for any changes since the last time he'd inspected, Anakin turned and quietly slid down the gnarly tree. Catching a vine as he slid, he changed direction and swung over to another tree, landing neatly on its closest outstretching limb. Standing up after dropping the vine, the 19-year-old began quietly moving down the limb's length to the trunk. Anakin Skywalker had grown tremendously in the past decade, having reached his full adult height and strong muscular build. He wore a simple but comfortable set of dark boots, loose-fitting leather pants, a pair of crisscrossing belts, a light tunic with an overcoat that reached his waist, and a bandoleer over his shoulder. Hanging from his belts were three lightsabers, his original shoto, various cargo pouches, and a blaster pistol while his bandoleer carried numerous powerpacks for the pistol and a handful of small grenades.

Reaching the tree trunk, Anakin found his little sister exactly as he left, nestled up against the trunk with her head resting on her hands and knees, sleeping. Gently shaking the little Togruta awake, Anakin said, "Come on, Ahsoka, time to go."

Eyes flickering open, Ahsoka Tano yawned as she stood and stretched her aching body. At age 13, she was all knees and elbows, a slender and lithe form that belied the considerable strength that was contained within. Ahsoka was dressed in a rugged and well-worn set of red boots, tight leather red pants, a pair of crisscrossing belts on her waist, and a simple dark red tunic for the humidity of Dagobah. Hanging from her belts were a lightsaber, a shoto, several small cargo pouches, and a blaster pistol with several extra powerpacks.

"Any change?" Ahsoka asked as she distractedly rubbed her eyes clear of any lingering sleep.

"Not yet," Anakin said as he pulled out a holoprojector and ignited the image, showing the camp and the various starships. "But we've definitely found the right spot and fleet."

Looking closely at the image, Ahsoka scowled as she recognized the markings on the various ships, especially the cruiser. "The _Black Rover_. Yeah, this is definitely those karking sleemos! But where's the plasma they stole? It's too soon for them to have sold it already…Right?"

"Probably," Anakin agreed as he too studied the image. "If I was the commander of these pirates, I'd stow the plasma away at some other secret base nearby for a short time. Let demand increase while making a few more runs. Then, when the prices are at their peaks, sell the whole lot of it for a nice fat payday."

"But if the captain's actually smart about this and did that," Ahsoka began as her scowl deepened. "That means we'd have to play nice until we find out where it is."

"That's right," Anakin confirmed, nodding decisively. "That's why we're going to do the Mynock Approach this time."

Ahsoka glanced over at her brother for a moment. After living and training with him for so many years, she had learned to see and sense whenever he was suppressing or bottling up his emotions. It wasn't anything really noticeable at first, just an occasional glower and glare here and there, slightly clenching his jaw, and his eyes getting hard and cold as he tried to force himself to focus on the task at hand. And, under her keen eyes, he was exhibiting all of those symptoms now. The pirate attack on the Naboo plasma storage station and the deaths of so many people he'd known, especially his good friend George Lukkan, had affected him more deeply than he wanted to admit.

"Anakin, maybe we should call in Obi-wan or even the Royal Knights for help," she suggested. "I know we can deal with these thugs ourselves, but if the rumors about the captain are true, even _we_ might need some help with this one."

Sighing long and slowly, Anakin shook his head slightly. "We'll be fine, Ahsoka. Just have faith in yourself and me. We've faced a lot together, and even if that captain is as skilled as they say, we can and _will_ still beat him."

Standing up after canceling the hologram, Anakin turned to make his way towards the campsite. As she stood up to follow him, Ahsoka couldn't help but to reach out and grab his arm, "Do you _really_ mean that or is that your need for vengeance speaking again?"

Anakin didn't answer. He merely gently shook her hand off before jumping away. Ahsoka was quick to follow.

* * *

**Thirty minutes later…**

The first part of the attack itself was a very subtle thing that none of the pirates noticed at first. Anakin had snuck about the _Black Rover_ and inserted a special datapad into one of the computer terminals. With that datapad, R2 was able to remotely hack into the central computer banks of the ship, even from all the way over where their ship was hidden. Once gaining entry and control, R2 downloaded all recent hyperspace jumps and coordinates, as well as any other little treats that might harm the pirates like bank account numbers and passcodes, and alternate identities.

Once that done, the various cannons and launchers of the ship suddenly came online and opened fire on the various other ships that were grouped nearby. Because of the dead of night and all the drunk partying the pirates had been doing in celebration of their great victory, they were all caught by surprise when they were suddenly caught under attack. Many of them just flopped about drunkenly, unable to comprehend what was happening. Others were able to recover and tried to make a break for their ships, to bring their shields and weapon systems online.

Seeing that the pirates were reacting as they'd expected, Ahsoka, hidden up in one of the trees, hit the detonation button. The bombs that she and Anakin had planted on each of the ships blew, shredding engines, cockpits, power generators, and fuel lines. In short order, each of the different freighters and starfighters were little more than flaming husks of their former selves. That was when the panic started setting in and the pirates began fleeing into the surrounding jungle. That was not a safe choice at all. Neither Ahsoka nor Anakin had felt the need to set any traps to capture or kill any that escaped, because the jungle would kill all but the most resourceful and skilled fairly quickly.

That was when the pirate captain came into view. Looking through the binoculars, Ahsoka watched as the man calmly walked through the burning carnage, seemingly at ease. There was a certain serenity about the man that spoke of his close familiarity with death and destruction. It took a moment but she realized that it was something that she had seen many times before, just not in this context. The serenity the captain was exhibiting was common among the Jedi, she'd seen it whenever she visited her close friend Shaak Ti at the Jedi Temple.

Then, inexplicably, the man turned and looked straight at her with hate-filled eyes. Despite the considerable distance between them, Ahsoka couldn't help recoiling in surprise as she lowered the binoculars. Raising the binoculars again, she saw that he was indeed looking right at her, with glowing yellow eyes. It was then that she could sense his dark presence. He was strong in the dark side of the Force, but not overly. The man had a strong chin with a thick black beard that merged into his sideburns, but his head was shaved, showing off rather a rather gaudy red and black tattoo of some kind. The only other thing that stood out about him in his state of undress were the pair of gauntlets he wore on his forearms and the belt around his waist.

Then the man turned away, glaring intensely off to the side. Ahsoka didn't need to look to know that he had turned to face Anakin as he descended down the ramp of the _Black Rover_. As he was walking casually away from the ship, the cruiser's engines suddenly blew apart, shredding the entire array to well beyond repair. Anakin only glanced over his shoulder to view his handiwork before returning his attention to the captain in front of him. Neither of the two spoke, they merely reached for their waists to draw their weapons of choice.

Blue and red blades sprung to life in their hands as the two glared at one another. But where Anakin was drawing in and using the Force in its entirety, the pirate captain was a beacon of hateful dark side energy. Ahsoka couldn't help but shiver slightly at the feel of the dark side, even from where she was watching. Even after spending so much time training with it, Ahsoka just couldn't feel comfortable around or even using the dark energy. It just went against her nature, as she and Anakin had long since realized.

Scrolling the binoculars out slightly, Ahsoka watched as the fight began in earnest between the two. They started with racing at one another and clashing with their blades, spinning around as they passed one another. As they turned towards each other, the pirate thrust him arm forward and unleashed a pointblank Force Push that knocked Anakin off balance slightly, despite his own powerful Force shields. The pirate immediately went on the offensive, swinging and twirling his saber viciously to cut Anakin to pieces. But Anakin recovered instantly and backed away, deflecting and blocking each slash and hack for a few paces.

The pirate quickly lost his temper at being unable to penetrate Anakin's defense and overextended himself as he tried to use a powerful chop to bash through them. As he was in the vulnerable position with his blade down, Anakin lashed out with a powerful kick to the face that sent the pirate reeling in pain. Anakin waited for the pirate to regain his composure before lunging with his own attack. But the pirate deflected it to the side, stepping in close, and jabbing his elbow into Anakin's face. Rather than let it faze him, Anakin ignored the pain and deftly raised his defenses again as the pirate tried to exploit what he thought would've been a weakened guard.

After a few moments of the two being engaged in a classic contest of Djem So-styled defense and counterattack, Anakin spun and brought his blue saber around in a slash for the man's neck. But the pirate ducked under the attack while raising his arm defensively over his head. The blue lightsaber hit the gauntlet on the man's forearm and instantly died. As Anakin stared at his lightsaber for a split second in disbelief, the pirate lunged forward and slammed his shoulder into Anakin's chest, knocking him backwards. Backing up as the pirate pursued him, Anakin quickly returned his dead saber to his belt and brought up the extra blade he carried. Holding his new pink saber at the ready, he once again began trying to predict his opponent's moves and find an opening to exploit.

Stopping his advance, the pirate raised both his arms and summoned large amounts of Force energy about him. In response, considerable amounts of debris and flaming wreckage rose up from the soggy earth behind and around the man. Anakin merely raise his brow at the show of force, clearly the pirate was either trying to intimidate him or believed that his talents lay solely in his lightsaber skills. Regardless, when the pirate began hurling the flames and shrapnel at him, Anakin responded. He deflected the shrapnel and redirected it back at the pirate, creating a literal maelstrom of metal, fire, and glass around and between the two. However, it was short-lived as Anakin began seizing the initiative and started adding in much larger and heavier objects into the mix, forcing the pirate to either abandon his hold on a majority of the shrapnel or physically dodge. Realizing he was seriously outclassed, the pirate soon abandoned the battle of telekinesis and rushed forward again with his red lightsaber. It was a challenge that Anakin was all-too-happy to meet head on.

The two met again in the midst of a shower of shrapnel and debris falling back to the earth, blades clashing savagely back and forth in a fierce contest of pure skill in Djem So and Soresu. With each strike, the speeds they moved at increased. With each block, the power they used grew stronger. Within seconds, they were quite literally surrounded by a sphere of shifting pink and red energy blades that nothing could've penetrated. Then, with one final slash, it came to an abrupt end with one of the lightsabers falling limply out of the limp hand of the recently deceased as his head was split in two.

Anakin watched dispassionately as the pirate collapsed to the muddy ground, utterly dead. Looking down at the man's lightsaber, he flicked his pink saber and sliced the weapon in two pieces, denying any of the surviving pirates of the horde from being able to use it again. As he sheathed the pink blade of the saber he was using, Anakin held up the hilt to look at it. "It is done, my friend. You've had your vengeance."

Crouching down to the body, Anakin unstrapped and tugged off the gauntlets from the man's arms, pulling one of them onto his right forearm as he turned to leave the clearing. As he was approaching, Ahsoka finally dropped down the ground, careful not to land in yet another puddle of filth. She smiled at him as he drew closer. "You didn't use the dark side this time."

"Didn't need it," Anakin said, smiling slightly. Then he tossed over the other gauntlet he had yet to put on. "It's cortosis ore, might come in useful later on."

"_Awe_, you _shouldn't_ have, big brother," Ahsoka purred, batting her eyelashes as she caught the gauntlet and quickly slid it on. "You _know_ you spoil me _too much!_"

"Well, if you don't want it…" he said, reaching over to take it back. But the young Togruta easily bounced out of reach, laughing softly. Reaching into one of his cargo pouches, Anakin pulled out a comlink, "R2, bring the _Saber_ over to the clearing, the way's clear." R2 chirped in confirmation.

A short while later, a familiar and heavily modified G9 Rigger swooped down out of the skies. Its lower outrigger folded smoothly up under the belly as the landing struts were lowered. The first thing most observers tended to notice about Anakin's ship, the _Rogue Saber_, was the large yellow lightning bolt-shaped insignia that was painted on the stabilizing wing, Anakin's chosen emblem.

The only other immediately visible change that observers saw was that its primary engine had been replaced with a larger and more powerful one than was usually equipped. Anakin had used salvaged pieces of the _Dandy Eagle_'s twin engines and power generator to replace and upgrade the _Rogue Saber_'s. The new generator and engine gave the _Rogue Saber_ a far greater amount of thrust and greater maneuvering ability during flight, which he was extremely proud of.

As he stared up at the descending ship, Anakin turned and looked back out over the stinking swamp. He closed his eyes and let the Force enter and flow through him. Life roiled around him, tugging his mind in a dozen directions at once. He let himself be buffeted, tilting his head from side to side, testing the flows. There was a hint of something unusual to the north, a knot in the Force unlike any he had felt before. it drew him and repelled him at the same time. The longer he studied it, the more he felt as though it was studying him right back.

Opening his eyes, Anakin looked back at the _Rogue Saber_. Ahsoka was looking at him questioningly, but she didn't ask what was bothering him. She could see him curious and determined expression in the wavering light of the fast-dying flames. Sighing to herself, she just rolled her eyes and walked up the boarding ramp, eager to get out of the murky humidity of the swamp, sealing the hatch as she went. Left alone outside, Anakin loped off into the swampy jungle with every sense alert for danger.

* * *

A giant slug that had 24 legs and a mouth full of teeth, eight meters from snout to tail, loomed over him, roaring. Its breath was vile, even in this swamp world. Anakin hacked a double line down its belly both his lightsabers and jumped to avoid the rush of foulness that released. Among the body parts expelled from the creature's stomach was the head of one of the pirates who'd fled into the jungle earlier. Anakin paid the head little more than a passing glance as the slug writhed and whined in pain. He left it to die on its own time. His destination was close.

He forced his way through a tangle of long, leg-like roots, scattering a clutch of big, white spiders as he went. The knot he had felt lay dead ahead, at the base of the largest tree he had seen so far. Despite the size, the tree looked sick with a malevolence that surprised him. If Dagobah as a whole was alive with the Force, then this dead had been poisoned by a deep scar from the dark side.

His searching gaze found a deep hole choked with roots and vines at its base. This was undoubtedly the source of the poison that had ruined the tree. A lingering evil lurked here, webbed to the place as firmly as the tree itself. its roots dug deep and stretched far. He approached more cautiously, no longer worrying about the planet's more obvious predators. What was inside that cave? What had happened here that was so terrible that it left such a small but potent nexus of dark side energy?

There was a clearing in front of the cave. He ran to it, and braced himself to enter the cave. But he paused before entering. The insidious pressure of the hole in the tree roots grew stronger, and his mind became a haze of confusing faintly-remembered memories and jumbled voices. Like a diver preparing for a long descent, he took a deep breath and entered the cave.

It was dark inside, of course, but somehow it managed to be even darker than he had expected. He struggled through thick curtains of roots and vines, resisting the urge to slash at them with his lightsabers. He kept his weapons carefully inactive, intuitively understanding that any aggressive move that he took might be reflected back at him hundredfold. Intuition was all he had to guide him now.

His groping fingers encountered a wall of stone ahead of him. Instead of a dead end, however, he found that the cave bent sharply to his right. He pressed on, feeling the dark side throbbing in his ears and beating against his useless eyes. The air seemed to vibrate. Every breath made him want to scream—but in dismay or delight, he couldn't tell. Another wall was ahead of him. This time the tunnel turned to his left. His grasping hands were wet with moisture. He could see them now, somehow, reaching ahead of him as he felt his way into the far reaches of the cave.

Gradually the vines fell away, leaving just the roots to obstruct him. Through a dream-like fog, he stumbled into a larger chamber, the outer limits of which were obscured. He looked down at his feet but he couldn't see them, either. The ground was hidden by a crawling gray mist. Anakin then realized with a shock that his jacket and weaponry were gone. He was now, somehow, wearing the traditional robes of a Jedi Padawan, complete with the braid and his first lightsaber.

"What will happen to me now?" he heard his younger voice asking, full of uncertainty and sadness.

"The Council have granted me permission to train you." That was Obi-wan's voice! "You will be a Jedi, I promise."

But he wasn't a Jedi, not even a _Padawan!_ Feeling unsettled for reasons he didn't fully understand, Anakin hurried forward, wanting to escape the current chamber. In short order, he found another wall and followed it into another heavily fogged chamber. The fog was extremely thick, concealing the muddy walls overgrown with roots. The floor was treacherous underfoot. He walked carefully forward, seeking the source of the darkness that emanating from all around him.

Then he abruptly stopped as the fog cleared and he found himself somewhere else entirely. Looking around, he recognized that he was standing upon one of the many countless landing platforms of Coruscant, as the city-planet buzzed around him in its eternal state of endless activity. If not for his Force senses telling him otherwise, Anakin could've easily believed he was truly there.

And in due course of him looking around so much, he spotted a familiar silver starship that was rapidly approaching the platform he was on, flanked by a pair of Naboo starfighters. He watched in confused silence as the large, sleek vessel settled gently down on the landing pad and the ramp was lowered. What was going on? Why was he seeing this? As he watched a group of Naboo officials and aides descend down the ramp, he caught a semi-familiar sight of a stately-dressed young woman in extremely ornate robes and facial paintings in the center of the group. Was this Padme's scheduled arrival on Coruscant that wasn't supposed to happen until another week or so?

Just as that thought passed his mind, a large fiery explosion suddenly burst to life. The explosion enveloped the disembarking group, quickly spreading and consuming the rest of the ship, blowing it to flaming pieces of debris.

"PADME!" Anakin yelled as he reflexively tried to rush to her side. But his sudden shout and movement caused the mists to suddenly return as the scene to faded to darkness. He stood there for a moment, panting as his mind raced, trying to understand what he was seeing.

Just as he was finally able to bring himself back under control, he noticed that the scene around him had changed. He was standing in the center of a large sandy arena. There was a large amount of Jedi Knights and Masters surrounding him, all of them (including himself) armed with active lightsabers, surrounded by a dozens upon dozens of Battle Droids. As he looked around himself, idly noting that the lightsaber he was carrying was neither of his own, Anakin spotted several familiar faces among the crowd, Obi-wan Kenobi, Mace Windu, Shaak Ti, Plo Koon, and Aayla Secura being among them.

"We will not be hostages to be bartered!" Mace yelled out looking off and up to the side, answering a call that Anakin hadn't heard. Even as he tried to look to where Mace's attention was pointed towards, faint clicking noises sounded as the Battle Droids refocused their aims on the Jedi group. With nothing to say, Anakin merely raised his lightsaber into a defensive Soresu stance and prepared for combat.

"Look!" a woman's voice called out as the sounds of several jet-engines reached them. Looking up, Anakin had just enough time to see some kind of high-speed transport flying over the arena's wall and angling down towards them. Then the transport launched a missile straight towards the heart of the Jedi grouping, causing a large explosion that scattered the group and probably killing most of them.

As this scene faded into the mists like the previous, Anakin had to kneel down to the ground, panting heavily. His head was swimming with racing thoughts, ideas, and questions, all of which had no answers available. But there was one thing he knew with certainty: these were visions of the future. Padme and the Jedi were in grave danger. He had to warn them. As he slowly recovered his breath, a thought hit him. Could he possibly stay here a little longer, get another vision? Perhaps he could discern the source of the danger from that last vision if it happened?

Finally regaining his breath, Anakin pushed himself to his feet. But as he did, a foreign presence suddenly slammed into his senses. One of immense power, drenched and thoroughly tainted in the power of the dark side. Anakin had felt this depth of darkness once before, but not like this. That previous time, the Sith Lord had been bloodthirsty and battle-starved and what he now felt wasn't. What he sensed was broken, twisted, pure and adulterated evil, but only possessing a faint, hidden layer of loneliness and longing. It was something he would never forget. And he suddenly _knew_, the source of the darkness that tainted this cave had finally decided to reveal itself.

Turning to confront the new arrival, Anakin found himself face to mask with the closest face of purest evil he'd ever seen. The being was male, humanoid, and quite tall, easily two meters in height. It wore a black helmet over a black mask with what was clearly a built-in rebreather that was taking loud, mechanical sounding breaths. Clad in heavy, black shoulder armor, a pair of flowing capes, and a black insulated environment suit, the creature of darkness was truly a fearsome sight to behold and Anakin couldn't help reflexively backing away from it in slight fear.

When asked later, Anakin would forever say that he didn't remember reaching or grabbing for his weapons, only that his lightsaber and shoto had appeared in his hands, lit and ready. The black-clad Sith Lord saw this and drew his own weapon, a large and fairly unartistic lightsaber that a red blade sprang from to meet his aggression head-on. With a burst of speed that belied his large and heavy physique, the Sith lunged forward with a powerful slash. Anakin jumped up and over the blade, bringing his blue blade down to strike. The Sith was able to halt his slash partway through and brought his saber up, blocking Anakin's attack.

Reaching up with his free hand, the Sith pinched his fingers and Anakin found his throat clenching shut involuntarily. The Sith held him in the air as he floundered, trying to break the Force Choke on him. After a moment of this, the Sith threw him to the side, slamming him against the earthen wall of the cave. The Choke was finally released as he collapsed to the ground, heaving for breath.

"You are _weak_," the Sith Lord stated, contempt clear in his voice. "_Give yourself_ to the dark side! It is the _only way_ to gain what you desire _most_."

"The dark side is only _part_ of what the Force is," Anakin grunted back. "I _have_ everything I've ever _wanted_. I don't _need_ any more."

"Fool," the Sith spat in disgust, clenching his fist dramatically. "If only you knew the _power_ of the dark side!"

"I know what is power," Anakin said, climbing to feet and falling into his preferred stance, left leg forward as he leaned onto it with his saber held high for an attack and the shoto low for defense. "True power is the ability to know when to _stop_."

"To stop is to die," the Sith grunted, raising his saber into a Djem So high guard. "So, DIE!"

Prepared this time for the burst of speed, Anakin deflected the Sith's lightsaber to the side with his shoto. At the same time, he spun and slipped under the red blade's arc, getting under the Sith's upraised arm. In a blinding arc of blue energy, Anakin's lightsaber slashed forward from behind the Sith's back and severed the black-helmeted head in a shower of sparks and shrapnel.

Backing up as the Sith's body fell lifelessly to the ground, Anakin looked down at the mask as it came to rest near him. After a long moment of stillness, the face of the mask suddenly exploded. As the smoke obscuring the face quickly dissipated, Anakin couldn't gasping as he stared in shock and slight fear at the face that was revealed to him.

Anakin Skywalker. _He_ was the Sith Lord!

* * *

(**Author's Note**) Sorry about the long wait. Had a minor burnout from writing and some developing interest in another story idea. But here it is, the sequel to Episode 1: A Retelling! And while there are some things that hint towards some things in this chapter, please try to not jump to conclusions. Some of the answers will be given in the next chapter, so please be patient.


	2. Imminent Depature

**Star Wars: Episode 2—A Retelling  
**Attack of the Clones  
By: Tellemicus Sundance  
_#02: Imminent Departure_

**Naboo**

Advisor to the Queen and Representative of the planet, Padme Amidala felt strangely uneasy in her office, in the same complex as, but unattached to, the Royal Palace of Queen Jamillia. Her desk was covered in holodisks and all the other usual clutter of her station. At the front of it, a holo played through the numbers, a soldier on one scale, a flag of truce on the other, tallying the predicted votes for the meeting on Coruscant. The hologram depiction of those scales seemed almost perfectly balanced.

Padme knew that the vote would be close, with the Senate of the Galactic Republic almost evenly divided over whether the government should create a formal army. It galled her to think that so many of the Senators would be voting based on personal gain—everything from potential contracts to supply the army for their home systems to direct payoffs from some of the commerce guilds—rather than on what was best for the Republic.

In her heart, Padme remained steadfast in her belief that violence breeds violence. The Republic was built on tolerance. It was a vast network of tens of thousands of systems and even more species, each with a distinct perspective. The only element that they shared was tolerance—tolerance of one another. The creation of an army might prove unsettling, even threatening, to so many of those systems and species, beings far removed from the great city-planet of Coruscant. If she had been a member of the Senate, Padme knew which direction she'd be voting on this issue. As it was, she, Queen Jamillia, and Naboo in general were all very worried over this coming vote.

Ever since renouncing their membership of the Republic ten years ago, Naboo had been through many crises and trials that tested the limits of Padme, the people, and their newly-elected Queen. There had been plenty of times that the temptation of returning to the Republic had been great, but the people of Naboo were resilient and adaptive. Padme knew that the populace was just now starting to take pride of their independence. But they were just a mere speck in a galaxy that had quickly fallen into disarray and civil unrest following the spectacular fallout that had occurred after the Battle of Naboo.

Padme understood that the Core worlds desired security and safety, seeing the more independently-minded Rim worlds as potential threats to their economies, people, and ways of life. And there had even been rumors surfacing for the past five years of a separatist movement that was quickly growing in strength, though there was no hard proof of such claims. Nevertheless, this was why the current vote was so controversial.

Sad as it was to admit, the new Supreme Chancellor was not helping matters in the least. Orn Free Taa had been elected by a fluke during the previous elections. The two extremist parties of the Republic had most of their votes tied up between their chosen champions, and Orn Free Taa, who was more neutral on most issues, was able to slip in and take the Chancellorship as a result. As it turned out, it may have been a slight blessing in disguise. Orn Free Taa never passed up a chance to indulge himself, but he also had a good heart and knew when the right thing needed to be done. But that didn't change the fact that under Orn Free Taa's rule, the Republic had become quite increasingly corrupt.

A commotion outside drew Padme to the window, and she looked down upon the complex courtyard to see a group of men jostling and fighting as the Naboo security forces rushed in to control the situation. Two of the figures which caught her eye were dressed in royal purple armor and flowing hooded cloaks. One was a man and the other was a Gungan female.

They were a new special security and military force that had been commissioned almost seven years earlier, inspired to her by a comment Anakin had made. Only recently had they started to prove their usefulness and effectiveness, as Padme had predicted they'd eventually would. They were the new Royal Knights of Naboo, Force-sensitives that had been born or found on Naboo. They were raised and trained to become the Naboo and Gungans' Queen or King's top protectors. Anakin had played a massive role in their training, giving them tips on how to touch and use the Force, as well as lightsaber training. Jedi Knight Obi-wan Kenobi had helped them to refine the teachings and practices, as well as giving them a more Jedi-like outlook on their duties and philosophies. But one thing that set the Royal Knights apart from the Jedi was the simple fact that they didn't swear allegiance to the Republic, but to Naboo, and to maintain peace and stability on the planet. Although, there was room enough in the vows that they could spread their influence and offer their services to any of Naboo's allies, like their recent trade partners on Malastare, headed by the Dug King.

There came a sharp rap on the door to her office, and as she turned back that way, the portal slid open and Captain Panaka strode in. "Just checking, Representative," said the man who had served as her personal bodyguard during the early days of her reign as Queen. Tall and dark-skinned, he had a steely gaze and an athletic physique only accentuated by the cut of his brown leather jerkin, blue shirt, and pants, and the mere sight of Panaka filled Padme with comfort. He was in his forties now, but still looked as if he could outfight any man on Naboo.

"Shouldn't you be seeing to the security of Queen Jamillia?" Padme asked.

Panaka nodded. "She is well protected, I assure you."

"From?" Padme prompted , nodding towards the window and the continuing disturbance beyond. It seemed that even the Royal Knights were having a bit of trouble without escalating the conflict.

"Spice miners," Panaka explained. "Contract issues. Nothing to concern you, Padme. Actually, I was on my way here to speak with you about the security for your trip to Coruscant."

"This is still a week away," Padme pointed out.

Panaka looked to the window. "Which gives us more time to properly prepare."

Padme knew better than to argue with the stubborn man. Since she would be flying an official starship of the new Naboo fleet, Panaka had the right, if not the responsibility, to get involved. And in truth, his concern pleased her, although she'd never admit it to him.

A shout outside and renewed fighting drew her attention briefly, making her wince. She only caught a glimpse of what happened this time before the two Knights finally had enough and used their powers to forcefully separate the parties involved and keep them away from each other, igniting their pink lightsabers to create a literal barrier between the groups. Another problem, there was _always_ a problem somewhere. Padme had to wonder if that was just the nature of people, to create some excitement when all seemed well. Given that unsettling thought, Sola's words from an earlier conversation they'd had came back to her, along with images of Ryoo and Pooja. How she loved those two carefree little sprites!

"Madam," Panaka said, drawing her out of her private contemplations.

"Yes?"

"We should discuss the security procedures."

It pained Padme to let go of the images of her nieces at that moment, but she nodded and forced herself back into her responsible mode. Captain Panaka had said that they had to discuss security, and so Padme Amidala had to discuss security.

* * *

**Four days later**

The home of George Lukkan was a quaint little two-story building on the edge of a lake, surrounded by large, leafy trees. Normally, there was a homely air of welcoming and slight mischievousness that was largely due to George himself. But now it was quiet and sad, the lone person inside, Korin Lukkan, it sat upon a recliner that she had sat many times before with her dear George. But never again would she feel his warm, strong body next to hers.

They had been married only a few short months. Their meeting had occurred after George had come to Theed to be trained as a Royal Knight when it was discovered that he was Force-sensitive, but far too old to join the Jedi Order. And while their initial meeting had been anything but glamorous, their time together had been nothing short of magical to her. And while it was always hard for a non-Force-user to judge the potential of one, it was fairly clear to her that George had had a bright future lined up for him as a Royal Knight. The salary of just one month was more than enough to pay for their little lake-side home and still have enough to buy furniture and groceries!

Though the details of his death were still sketchy, Korin had managed to learn that when the pirate attack on the plasma station had happened, George had rushed forward to repel them. The first few minutes of the firefight had actually gone quite well in the defenders' favor, until the pirate captain had made his appearance. He had singled out and attacked George. For not only was George a Royal Knight and an army unto himself, but he was also leading the defenders and coordinating their efforts to repel the pirates. The specifics of the fight that occurred had not been revealed to her, only the important facts: the pirate had slain George after a short but savage fight. To make matters worse, the pirate had escaped the station after his horde had raided the place and took everything of value that they could before the Naboo fleet could arrive.

A quiet knocking sound on the door drew Korin's attention. Standing up, she moved over to the door and peered out the viewscreen to see who her visitor was. It took a moment, but she was eventually able to recognize the young man outside. Hitting the unlock button, she opened the door and turned to greet him.

"Hey, Korin," Anakin Skywalker said, nodding in greeting to her. "Mind if I come in?"

Rather than verbally reply, Korin just moved to the side and allowed the Skywalker entry. There really wasn't much choice in this regard. After not only his involvement with Queen Amidala's escape from the Trade Federation, the Battle of Naboo, and all that he'd done for Naboo in the following years, Anakin Skywalker had become something of a folk hero among the people of Naboo, right along with Padme Amidala, little Ahsoka Tano, and Obi-wan Kenobi. He was the unofficial 'First Knight' and cofounder of the Royal Knights, owner and lead designer of Sunrunner StarDrive, and a very skilled bounty hunter in his own right. Who was she to deny a Hero of Naboo entry into her home?

Moving to the living room, Korin returned to her seat, watching as the young man looked out the large window at the lake beyond. "This is a beautiful area," he said quietly. "I can see why George decided to live here."

"What do you want, Skywalker?" Korin finally asked. She really wasn't in the mood for company, no matter just who that company was.

Turning back to face her, Anakin looked down upon her with a serious expression. "George Lukkan was a very dear friend of mine, and I know what you're going through right now."

"No, you don't," Korin said slowly, glaring slightly at Anakin. How dare he claim to know what she was going through! She'd just lost her husband, the man she'd given her heart to! How could he possibly know what she was going through?!

Anakin studied her expression, no doubt sensing her turbulent emotions in the Force. After a moment of silence, in which she'd managed to regain her composure slightly, he finally said, "I tracked down those pirates, destroyed their ships, recovered what they stole, and personally killed that pirate that took George." Reaching to his waist, he unclipped one of the lightsabers he had worn there and held it out to her. After only a short glance, Korin was able to recognize the saber as George's. "I know it's not much of a comfort, but George was avenged."

"What does it matter?"Korin asked, taking her husband's weapon from him, holding it in two hands as she turned it every which way to study it. "He isn't here anymore. He's gone. I'll never see him again, be with him again. He left me alone."

As she said this, Anakin's gaze changed. "No, he didn't, not entirely."

"What are you talking about?" Korin asked, looking up at the boy questioningly.

He smiled ever so faintly as he slowly reached out a hand towards her. "He left you a little 'gift' before he died. I can _feel_ it, in the Force." As he said this, he gently brushed his fingers against her abdomen, causing Korin to freeze in surprise and faint but growing hope. Seeing the flickering hope dancing in her eyes, Anakin let a small but reassuring smile cross his face. Then he closed his eyes, concentrating deeply in the Force as he laid his hand upon her stomach. "This one is going to be a _strong _one; willful, stubborn, and slightly overbearing, but a loyal and great friend. It will bring great honor and pride upon you, George, and your whole family."

When he felt something wet hit his outstretched hand, Anakin opened his eyes to find Korin crying. But her tears belied the happiness she was feeling, as evident by the small smile that was crossing her face. If nothing else, Anakin found himself relieved and content that he had managed to restore his friend's widow with some much needed hope. He made a silent vow to himself that he'd check up on Korin and her child later on to see what would become of them.

* * *

"This is not good news," Captain Panaka remarked, after delivering the blow to Amidala.

"We've suspected all along that Count Dooku, Senator Palpatine, and their separatists would court the Trade Federation and the various commercial guilds," Padme replied, trying to put a good face on it all. Panaka had just come in with Captain Typho, his nephew, with the report that the Trade Federation had thrown in with the separatist movement that now threatened to tear the Republic apart.

"Viceroy Gunray is an opportunist," she continued. "He will do anything that he believes will benefit him financially. His loyalties end at his purse. Count Dooku must be offering him favorable trade agreements, free run to produce goods without regard to the conditions of the workers or the effect on the environment. Viceroy Gunray has left more than one planet as a barren dead ball, floating in space. Or perhaps Count Dooku is offering the Trade Federation absolute control of lucrative markets, without competition."

"I'm more concerned with the implications to you, Advisor," Panaka remarked, drawing a curious stare from Padme. "The separatists have shown themselves to not be above violence. There have been assassination attempts across the Republic."

"But would Count Dooku and the separatists consider Representative Amidala almost an ally at this time?" Captain Typho interjected, and both Panaka and Padme looked at this usually quiet man in surprise. "Senator Palpatine may only be their spokesman, but he still must have some ties here to Naboo. I can't see him allowing them to bring any harm upon the Advisor over some political dispute."

Padme's look quickly turned into a stare. There was an angry edge to her fair features. "I am no friend to any who would dissolve a democratic government out of greed, Captain." Her tone left no room for debate—and of course, there would be no debating that point. In the few years she had been made an Advisor of the Queen and a Representative of Naboo, Amidala had shown herself to be among the most loyal and powerful supporters of Naboo's independence. She had become a legislator determined to improve Naboo's situation with the rest of the galaxy and the Republic, but to do so from within the framework of the Republic's constitution. Representative Amidala fervently believed that the beauty of the governing system was its built-in abilities, even demands, for self-improvement.

"Agreed, Representative," Typho said with a bow. He was shorter than his uncle but powerfully built, muscles filling the blue sleeves of his uniform, his chest solid under the brown leather tunic. He wore a black leather patch over his left eye, which he had lost in the battle with that same Trade Federation a decade before. Typho had been just a teenager then, but had shown himself well, and made his uncle Panaka proud. "And no offense meant. But on this issue concerning the creation of an army of the Republic, you have remained firmly in court of negotiation over force. Would not the separatists agree with your point of view?"

When Padme put her initial outrage aside and considered the point, she had to agree.

"Count Dooku has thrown in with Nute Gunray, say the reports," Panaka cut in, his tone flat and determined. "That mere fact demands that we tighten security about Representative Amidala."

"Please do not speak of me as though I am not here," she scolded, but Panaka didn't blink.

"In matters of security, Representative, you _are_ not here," he replied. "At least, your voice is not. My nephew reports to me, and his responsibilities on this matter cannot be undermined, Take all precautions."

With that, he bowed curtly and walked away, and Padme suppressed immediate desire to rebuke him. He was right, and she was better off because he dared to point it out. She looked back at Captain Typho.

"We will be vigilant, Representative," Typho said. "I will also be requesting that two Knights accompany us."

"I have my duty, and that duty demands that I soon leave for Coruscant," she said firmly.

"And I have my duty," Typho assured her, and like Panaka, he offered a bow and walked away.

Padme watched him go, then gave a great sigh, remembering Sola's words to her and wondering honestly if she would ever find the opportunity to follow her sister's advice. Advice that she was finding strangely tempting at that particular moment. She realized then that she hadn't seen Sola, the kids, or her parents in nearly two weeks, not since that afternoon in the backyard with Ryoo and Pooja.

Time did seem to be slipping past her.

* * *

(**Author's Note**) Before anyone asks, _yes,_ I was inspired by the Imperial Knights of the _Star Wars Legacy_ comics for the Royal Knights of Naboo. Just some quick info on them before I continue on: They are still relatively few in number, less than a hundred; they accept both humans and Gungans (all native to Naboo); they are nearly fully trained Force sensitives on par with Jedi but focus more on lightsaber and combat training than esoteric Force powers; and Anakin and Ahsoka aren't technically members of them because they're too independent to be tied down by such an organization (but they does regularly help train them)

I hope this chapter offers some small insight into the workings of the galaxy and Republic between the two episodes. I'll try to expand on it further in coming chapters.

PS: If you're interested, go check out my DeviantART page for a few symbols that'll be playing minor roles in the story.


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